Viola inconspicua

Blume

Chinese violet

ViolaceaeLeavesSpice/BeverageScore: 33/100

iNaturalist · cc-by-nc
(c) Stargazer, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

iNaturalist · cc-by-nc
(c) 鐦鍆錒（锎钔锕）, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

What to Eat

Edible parts: Leaves, Leaves - tea

The young leaves are eaten raw or brewed as tea. It is sold in local markets in China and has historically been used as a famine food.

Where to Find It

A tropical plant. It grows in grassland and the edges of forests in China below 1,600 m above sea level. In Sichuan and Yunnan.

Asia, China, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, PNG, Philippines, SE Asia, Taiwan, Vietnam,

Countries: United Arab Emirates, Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bahrain, Brunei, Bhutan, China, Georgia, Indonesia, Israel, India, Iraq, Iran, Jordan, Japan, Kyrgyzstan, Cambodia, North Korea, South Korea, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Laos, Lebanon, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Mongolia, Maldives, Malaysia, Nepal, Oman, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Syria, Thailand, Tajikistan, Timor-Leste, Turkmenistan, Turkey, Taiwan, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Yemen

How to Identify

A herb without a stem. It keeps growing from year to year. It grows 6-10 cm high. The rootstock are buried deeply in the soil. Leaves and flowers emerge in the spring. The leaves come from the base from the roots. The leaves are oval or triangle shaped. They vary in shape or size. The flowers are purple. The flowers are fertilised before the flower opens. They do not have a smell. The fruit are oval capsules.

Nutrition Score: 33/100

Part	Moisture	kJ	kcal	Protein	Vit A	Vit C	Iron	Zinc
Leaves	88	164	39	2.4	—	31	—	—

Other Information

It is a famine food. It is sold in local markets in China.

Notes

There are about 500 Viola species.

Names & Synonyms

Hoa-tim an, Li tou cao, Tsingimba

Viola betonicifolia subsp. novaguineensis D. M. Mooreand several others

References (6)

Catalogus 57. 1823
Hu, Shiu-ying, 2005, Food Plants of China. The Chinese University Press. p 562 (As Viola chinensis)
Li, D. et al, 2017, Ethnobotanical survey of herbal tea plants from the traditional markets in Chaoshan, China. Journal of Ethnopharmacology. 205 (2017) 195-206
Plants of Papua New Guinea LAE herbarium record (As Viola betonicifolia subsp. novaguineensis)
Mot So Rau Dai an Duoc O Vietnam. Wild edible Vegetables. Ha Noi 1994, p 142
Pham-Hoang Ho, 1999, An Illustrated Flora of Vietnam. Nha Xuat Ban Tre. p 550